Image: Courtesy of Dev N. Pathak, Sociology, SAU.
About The Department - Vision and Beyond



Over the last half century or so, a vast body of knowledge(s) on the region has evolved within South Asia that mostly remain within the countries of their origin due to a number of reasons. In this specific context, there is a crucial need to share some of this knowledge in contemporary times when, despite assertions of localisations and mini-narratives, the universal does retain its emphasis through a constant dialectics of the two. The debate between the local and universal or mini-narratives and meta-narratives continue to rage, and is more clearly visible in the context of South Asian context. Even so, we are acutely aware of the non-existence of regular and serious forums for South Asian scholarship in social sciences to showcase our own research and thinking. We are also quite conscious of the fact that the process of establishing sociology in the region has created its own peculiarities which has established close inter-relationships between sociology and social anthropology, history, cultural studies, archeology and other related disciplines. We consider the porousness of South Asian sociology one of its most enduring strengths. On the other hand, we are not unaware of the unfortunate regressions sociology has experienced in different South Asian contexts over the last 30 years or so marked by numerous institutional failures.



It is within the context(s) outlined above that the Department of Sociology at South Asian university, initiated in 2011 witihn the Faculty of Social Sciences contributes to teaching, training and knowledge production. It is not intended to be a mere forum for the production of cutting-edge intellectual knowledge and exchange of that knowledge traversing across national borders in South Asia and beyond. Our expectation is that this knowledge would dislocate the persistence of an imposed framework emanating from the colonisation process and postcolonial politics of knowledge. Despite the passage of over fifty years since the process of official decolonization began in the region, much of the analyses of our problems, situations, histories and dynamics emanate from Euro American academia; this is certainly the case when it comes to conceptual formulations and theoretical approaches that are being employed in exploring the region’s social and cultural complexities often without much self-reflection.



The Department of Sociology strongly believes in the need to reformulate this situation by effectively centering South Asia without naively shunning thought from these established centers of knowledge be they in Europe or North America. We believe in an active and robust engagement with these issues within South Asia. In this context, through the work of its faculty and the research of graduate students, the Department would bring forward the newer forms of knowledge that comprehends and represents the South Asian context with a more authoritative and nuanced voice. We strongly believe in the need to actively intervene in the process of knowledge formation through a constant sharing of knowledge that the region produces as well as through interaction with the world beyond the region.



The courses taught in the Department as well as the research carried out by its faculty members reflect this overall vision and our collective commitment towards innovation, move beyond untenable stereotypes, and explore a new world of knowledge within the discipline of Sociology.


Class of 2011, Department of Sociology, South Asian University; Image: Courtesy of Dev N. Pathak, Sociology, SAU.

Sunday, July 27, 2014

Commencement Date for Classes for Sociology Semester 1

Please note that classes for candidates in the First Semester of the MA program in sociology will begin on July 29th. If 29th is a holiday, classes will begin on 30th July. Please refer to the first semester time table elsewhere in this blog.
Posted by at No comments:

Friday, July 25, 2014

Sociology Seminar Series 2014-15 (Monsoon Semester Schedule)



Date
Title
Presenter
13 August
Violence and Collective Memory
Prof. Partha Ghosh,
Nehru  Memorial Museum and Library, Teen Murti Bhawan
17 September
Madrasas and the Question of Reform
Dr. Arshad Alam, SSS, Jawaharlal Nehru University
01 October
“'All of us have closed ourselves into a cocoon”: Self-Segregation and Representations of Poverty in Delhi Upper-Class Neighbourhoods
Dr. Jules Naudet
Centre de Sciences Humaines
08 October
Alternative Spatialities: Vernacular Thought and Territorial Imagination in Twentieth Century Kerala
Prof. Udaya Kumar, Dept. of English, University of Delhi
22 October
India and China Diaspora Policies: Comparative Perspectives
Dr. Sadananda Sahoo, Indira Gandhi National Open University & Global Research Forum on Diaspora and Transnationalism
12 NovemberEntrapment, Transparency and Technologies of TruthProf. Ravi Sundaram, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies

Time:
02.30 PM 
Venue:
FSI Hall, Ground Floor, South Asian University, 
Akbar Bhawan, Chanakyapuri,
New Delhi 110021
Phone:
24122512; 24122513; 24122514


ALL ARE CORDIALLY INVITED!
Posted by at No comments:

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

English Language Diagnostic Test


The Faculty of Social Sciences will conduct an English Language Diagnostic Test for ALL FSS students (incoming as well as continuing) for the course English for Academic Purposes. Please note that the test is mandatory for all MA and Mphil/PhD candidates in the Departments of International Relations and Sociology at FSS. Date and time of the examination is: August 20, 2014; 02:00-04:00 pm; Venue: Mezzanine Hall, SAU.


The examination is designed to identify the level of language help each candidate needs and to offer specialized instruction from this semester onward.
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)